S8H 

H£5a 


.NEMANI 


• 

THE  ROBERT  E.  COWAN  COLLECTION 

<      PRESKNTED   TO   THE 

UNIVERSITY  OF  CHLIFORNIH 

BY 

C.  p.  HUNTINGTON 

-  3UNE.  1897. 

Accession  no  6ffJ2>        Class  No,  ^^^-^ 

/f^f^ 

. 

Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2007  with  funding  from 

IVIicrosoft  Corporation 


http://www.archive.Qrg/details/allopathyhonneopaOOhillrich 


ALLOPATHY 


AND 


HOMOEOPATHY 


III 


OF 


Common  Sense! 


BY 


F.   Hiller,    IVT.D. 


SAN  FRANCISCO  : 
Bruce's  Job  Printing  House,  535  Sacramento  Street, 

1872 


<o<j^i)0 


It  is  difficult  to  carry  the  Torch-Light  of  Truth 
through  the  masses,  without  stepping  occasionally  upon 
a   toe   or   burning   a  wig   or   a   head-dress. 


To 

WILLIAM   SHARON,   Esq., 
ISAAC   L.    REQUA,    Esq., 
A.    K.    P.   HARMON,    Esq., 
SAMUEL   G.   THELLER,   Esq. 

Gentlemen: 

I  have  taken  the  liberty  to  dedicate  this  offering 
to  you,  as  a  token  of  respect  and  esteem.  This, 
together  with  a  grateful  remembrance  of  the  courtesies 
extended  to  me,  and  the  support  which  I  have  derived 
from  your  friendship,  will  be,  I  hope,  a  sufficient  excuse 
for  the  liberty  I  have  taken. 

Very  truly,  yours,  etc. 

F.   HILLER,    M.  D. 


San  Francisco,  1872. 


OF  THE 


U-NIV^SITY  I 


TO  THE 

MEMORY 

OF 

SAMUEL     HAHNEMANN 

THE  DISCOVERER  OF 

.  ilfi^  ifrtt^  J^atti  0f  d{ttri[ 

Born  April  loth,   1775  ;    —      Died  June    4th,   1843. 


-v.#-v^^x^-r^^'%*^-^^-#-*^"%-#-v^- 


Ladies  and  Gentlemen: 

It  is  a  remarkable  and  at  the  same  time  a  terrible  and 
most  lamentable  fact,  that  the  practice  of  medicine— an  art  of 
daily  necessity  and  application,  most  nearly  aifecting  the 
dearest  interests  and  well  being  of  mankind,  and  to  the 
improvement  of  which  we  are  encouraged  and  impelled  by 
the  strongest  motives  of  interest  and  humanity,  of  love  for 
our  neighbor  and  emulous  zeal  for  professional  skill  and 
superiority  therein — should,  after  a  probation  of  so  long  a 
period,  and  recorded  experience  of  at  least  two  thousand 
years,  still  remain,  as  it  confessedly  does  in  most  respects,  so 
little  understood  and  generally  of  such  doubtful  and  uncer- 
tain application. 


6 

Tlie  present  age,  unlike  any  that  has  preceded  it,  is  pe- 
culiarly one  of  rigid,  radical  and  fundamental  examination. 
Everything  in  the  Heavens  above,  or  in  the  Earth  beneath, 
is  tested  and  retested ;  analyzed,  synthetized  and  submitted 
to  the  crucible  of  stern  reason,  and  the  logical  conclusion  of 
experience  ;  even  to  the  extreme  of  possibility.  This  is  true 
not  only  of  the  material  universe,  but  of  all  mental  and  moral 
conditions,  of  social,  political  and  even  religious  institutions. 
Nothing,  in  this  day,  and  especially  in  this  country  of  free 
thought  and  liberty  of  speech,  is  taken  for  granted  merely 
because  it  can  lay  claim  to  the  honors  of  a  great  antiquity, 
or  can  number  thousands  or  millions  of  adherents.  Vast 
differences  are  to  be  observed  in  governments,  churches, 
creeds  and  social  practices ;  and  all,  however  opposite  and 
apparently  antagonistic,  are  working  out  a  solution  to  the 
problem — 

"  What  is  Truth  ?  " 

Conservatism  is  fast  dying  out,  hidden  and  smothered  -by 
the  ever-flowing  tidal-waves  of  progression.  Radicalism 
ceases  to  become  radical,  by  the  daily  and  hourly  recurrence 
of  startling  discoveries,  and  new,  unheard-of,  and  unexpected 
adaptations  of  old  laws.  The  mistakes  of  to-day  will  be 
found  to  be  mistakes,  and  will  be  rectified.  Whenever  and 
wherever  freedom  holds  her  sway,  evil  must  work  out  its 
own  destruction,  and  good  enthrone  itself  in  the  hearts  of 
those  benefitted  by  its  benign  influence.  In  this  spirit,  and 
with  such  views,  let  us  look  at  the  progressof  Medical  Science 
that  we  may  learn  from  the  experience  of  the  past  to  correctly 
estimate  the  developments  of  the  present  and  aid  wisely  in 
the  working  for  a  more  glorious  future. 

Medicine  has  been — not  inaptly  styled — ''The  daughter  of 
dreams."  From  the  time  of  Hippocrates  until  now,  the  great 
body  of  the  profession  has  been  swayed  by  conflicting  theo- 
ries, founded  upon  either  the  wholly  unsupported  fancies 
and  conjectures  of  their  authors,  or  unwarrantably  built  upon 
isolated  facts,  often  accidental  in  their  occurence,  partial  in 
their  observation,  and  improperly  understood  in  their  inhe- 


rent  nature  and  theoretical  significance,  pointing  to  a  law  of 
action  widely  different  from  the  one  in  support  of  which  they 
had  been  adduced.  All  branches  of  medicine  have  been 
involved  in  these  crude  absurdities  ;  nor  has  the  nomencla- 
ture of  any  department  of  science,  even  in  our  day,  been  en- 
tirely purged  from  the  errors  and  misleadings  with  which  the 
past  so  fruitfully  abounds. 

To  mark  the  improvement  and  advancement  in  the  various 
branches  of  medical  science  ;  to  compare  the  present  with 
the  past ;  to  observe  the  unfolding  growth,  maturity,  and 
decay  of  medical  creeds ;  to  discern  the  power  of  those 
master-minds,  that,  far  beyond  the  ages  in  which  they  lived 
fore-shadowed  the  forth-coming  discoveries  that  were  to 
make  other  men  immortal  ;  to  sigh  over  the  incredulity  of 
whole  races,  whose  blind  and  dogmatical  adherence  to  the 
theories  of  some  prominent  physiologist  or  anatomist — was  at 
once  silenced  by  the  light  of  a  new  truth,  suddenly  and 
clearly  promulgated  by  a  single  mind.  To  do  all  these 
thiEgs,  was  the  labor  of  a  whole  life;  volumes  could  be 
written  in  such  investigation,  and  still  thousands  of  facts  be 
left  untouched  and  forgotten,  forever  buried  in  the  chaos 
of  medical  creeds,  medical  truths  and  medical  fictions. 
.  Old  Physic  has  for  several  centuries  past  drifted  in  the 
wrong  direction,  striking  occasionally  upon  a  rock,  but  finds 
itself  to  day  further  off  from  shore  than  ever  before. 

Medicine,  the  oldest  and  most  important  of  all  branches  of 
science,  has  not  kept  up  with  developments  in  other  depart- 
ments, but  the  rays  of  light  have  already  deeply  penetrated 
into  the  darkness  of  the  past,  fast  undermining  the  building 
of  the  so-called  "  Rational  Medicine  "  with  all  its  hypothesis 
and  traditions. 

It  was  near  the  end  of  the  last  century,  that  the  idea 
occurred  to  a  single  man,  that  the  reason  he  had  failed  in 
practice  must  be  that  the  medical  profession  was  entirely  on 
the  wrong  path.  He  made  the  effort  to  cure  diseases  on  the 
principle  directly  opposite  to  those  on  which  he  had  been 
educated  to  act,    and  he  was   successful.      He    thought   a 


8 

reformation  of  medicine  needful  and  desirable,  and  proper  to 
be  attempted.  He  set  about  it,  hoping,  if  he  should  succeed 
in  pointing  out  a  more  safe,  certain  and  pleasant  road  to  the 
life-giving  and  life-renewing  fountain  of  health,  that  it 
would  be  a  blessing  to  suffering  humanity.     That  man  was 

Samuel    Hahnemann. 

Had  the  reform  inaugurated  by  him  been  of  an  insig- 
nificant character,  it  might  have  been  accepted  by  the 
medical  world  without  controversy.  Had  the  new  path 
into  which  he  invited  the  profession  been  only  a  little 
smoother  than  the  old  one  and  lying  right  alongside  of  it, 
like  that  which  led  the  pilgrims  from  the  main  high-way  into 
the  domains  of  the  giant,  physicians  might  have  been  easily 
lured  into.it.  But  the  revolution  was  a  radical  one.  It- 
contemplated  a  counter-march  such  as  the  teachers  and 
practitoners  of  the  healing  art  had  never  been  called  upon  to 
make.  It  called  upon  the  chiefs  of  the  profession  to  reverse 
the  wheels  of  the  ponderous  engine,  and  seek  for  the  long- 
sought  shore  in  the  opposite  direction. 

The  new  doctrine  came  forth  embodied  in  only  three 
simple  words :  ^^Similia  Similihus  GuranturJ' . 

Thus  the  year  1790'  gave  birth  to  the  celebrated  system  of 
Hahnemann,  which  has  received  from  him  a  Greek  title, 
expressive  of  its  peculiarities — Homoeopathy,  and  in  opposi- 
tion to  "  Gontraria  Contraries  Curantur — Allopathy. 

It  is  not  my  purpose  to  entertain  you  with  a  detailed 
history  of  medicine,  nor  even  to  notice  the  successive  and 
conflicting  theories  that  have  arisen  from  time  to  time;  but 
simply  to  show  that  the  old,  or  Allopathic  system  of  medicine 
as  practiced  till  this  day  is  unworthy  of  our  confidence;  that 
its  theory  of  therapeutics  is  irrational  and  worthless;  that 
there  is  an  absence  of  any  reliable  principle  to  guide  the 
physicians  in  the  treatment  of  diseases;  and  that  the  sick  are 
far  better  off  when  left  to  nature,  than  when  subject  to  the 
pernicious  system  of  dosing,  while  a  growing  want  of  confi- 
dence in  this  system,  both  in  the  public  mind  and  the  medical 


profession,  loudly  calls  for  something  more  rational  in  its 
theory  and  more  successful  in  its -practice. 

I  shall  not  ask  you  to  accept  my  individual  opinions  in 
support  of  these  views,  but  shall  place  upon  the  witness- 
stand,  and  give  you  the  declarations  of  men  jwhojiaye^spent 
their^Jjyxss--in__lhe_  practice. -oi_ihis  system — most  of  them 
authors  and  teachers,  men  living  in  different  countries,  and 
from  the  highest  ranks  of  the  profession,  and  who,  if  any, 
should  be  able  to  pronounce  a  eulogy  upon  this  system  of 
practice. 

I  introduce  to  you  first  Boerhave,  a  man  justly  illustrious 
in  the  history  of  medicine,  he  lived  a  century  before  Hahne- 
mann, and  was  for  over  forty  years  Professor  at  the  Univer- 
sit}^  at  Leiden. 

Hear  him!    He  says: 

♦♦  If  we  compare  the  good  which  a  half  dozen  true  disciples  of  ^sculapius 
have  done  since  their  art  began,  with  the  ^vil  which  the  immense  number  of 
doctors  have  inflicted  upon  mankind,  we  must  be  satisfied  that  it  would  have 
been  infinitely  better  for  mankind  if  medical  men  had  never  existed." 

The  celebrated  Bichat  of  Paris,  thus  speaks  of  the  thera- 
peutic system  of  his  day: 

"  It  is  an  incoherent  assemblage  of  incoherent  opinions;  it  is  perhaps,  of  all 
the  physiological  sciences  that  which  best  shows  the  caprice  of  the  human 
mind.  AVhat  do  I  say  ? — It  is  not  a  science  for  a  methodical  mind ;  it  is  a 
shapeless  assemblage  of  inexact  ideas,  of  observations  often  peurile,  of  decep- 
tive remedies  and  of  formula  as  fastidiously  and  fantastically  conceived,  as  they 
are  tediously  arranged."    • 

Then  we  find  the  equally  celebrated  French  physician, 
Majendib,  saying: 

«« I  hesitate  not  to  declare,  no  matter  how  sorely  I  shall  wound  our  vanity, 
that  so  gross  is  our  ignorance  of  the  physiological  disorders  called  diseases, 
that  it  would  perhaps  be  better  to  do  nothing,  and  resign  the  complaint  we  are 
called  upon  to  treat  to  the  resources  of  Nature,  than  to  act  as  we  frequently 
do,  without  knowing  the  why  and  the  wherefore  of  our  conduct,  and  at  the 
obvious  risk  of  hastening  the  end  of  our  patient." 

Dr.  Good,  the  great  nosologist,  asserts  that 

"  The  science  of  medicine  is  a  barbarous  jargon,  and  the  effects  of  our 
medicines  on  the  human  system  are  in  the  highest  degree  uncertain  ;  except, 


10 

indeed,  that  they  have  already  destroyed  more  lives  than  war,  pestilence  and 
famine  combined." 

Sir  Astley  Cooper,  England's  greatest  surgeon  says: 

•'  The  science  of  medicine  is  founded  on  conjecture  and  improved  by 
murder." 

But,  it  may  be  said,  these  men  lived  in  the  past,  and  since 
their  time  the  science  of  medicine  has  improved  and  its 
practice  has  become  more  rational  and  safe. 

Let  us  then  come  down  to  a  later  period,  and  listen  to  Dr. 
Christison,  the  present  eminent  Professor  of  Materia  Medica 
at  the  University  of  Edinburgh.     He  says  : 

♦•  Of  all  medical  sciences,  therapeutics  is  the  most  unsatisfactory  in  its 
present  state,  and  the  least  advanced  in  progress,  and  surrounded  by  the  most 
deceitful  sources  of  fallacy." 

Sir  John  Forbes,  Fellow  of  the  Royal  College  of  Physi- 
cians :  Physician  to  the  Queen's  Household,  late  editor  of  the 
*'  British  and  Foreign  Medical  Review,"  after  a  frank  admis- 
sion of  the  imperfections  of  Allopathic  medicine,  says: 

«•  First.  That  in  a  large  proportion  of  the  cases  treated  by  Allopathic 
physicians,  the  disease  is  cured  by  Nature  and  not  by  them." 

•'  Second.  That  in  a  lesser,  but  still  not  a  small  proportion,  the  disease  is 
cured  in  spite  of  them  ;  in  other  words,  their  interference  opposing  instead  of 
assisting  the  cure." 

'*  Third.  That,  consequently  in  a  considerable  proportion  of  diseases,  it 
would  be  as  well,  or  better  with  patients,  in  the  actual  condition  of  the 
medical  art,  as  more  generally  practiced,  if  all  remedies,  at  least  active  remedies 
especially  drugs  were  abandoned."  And  finally  adds,  "Things  have  arrived  at 
such  a  pitch  that  they  cannot  be  worse.     They  must  mend  or  end." 

But,  I  may  be  asked,  what  are  the  views  of  the  Professors 
and  writers  in  our  own  country.  Have  they  no  more  confi- 
dence in  the  healing  art  than  their  brethren  in  the  old 
world  ?     Let  us  see : 

Dr.  Rush,  one  of  the  lights  of  the  profession  in  his  day, 
remarks  : 

"  The  healing  art  is  an  unroofed  temple,  uncovered  at  the  top  and  cracked  at 
the  foundation." 

And  again : 

"  Our  want  of  success  results  from  the  following  causes  :  First. — Ignorance 


11 

of  the  law  governing  disease.  Second. — Our  ignorance  of  a  suitable  remedy 
Third. — Want  of  efficacy  in  the  remedy  ;  and  finally  we  have  assisted  in. 
multiplying  disease  ;  nay,  we  have  done  more  :  we  have  increased  their 
mortality." 

Professor  Chapman,  who  stood  at  the  head  of  the  profes- 
sion in  Philadelphia,  in  an  address  to  the  medical  society, 
after  speaking  of  the  pernicious  effects  of  calomel,  adds: 

"  Gentlemen,  it  is  a  disgraceful  reproach  to  the  profession  of  medicine;  it  is 
quackery,  horrid  unwaranted  murderous  quackery.  *  *  *  But  I  will 
ask  another  question,  who  is  it  that  can  stop  the  career  of  mercury  at  will, 
after  it  has  taken  the  reins  into  its  own  destructive  and  ungovernable  hands  ? 
He,  who  for  an  ordinary  cause  resigns  the  fate  of  his  patient  to  mercury  is  a 
vile  enemy  to  the  sick  ;  and  if  he  is  tolerably  popular,  will,  in  one  successful 
season,  have  paved  the  way  for  the  business  of  life,  for  he  has  enough  to  do 
ever  afterwards  to  stop  the  mercurial  breach  of  the  constitutions  of  his  dilapi- 
dated patients." 

And  yet,  this  article  of  the  Materia  Medica  in  some  of  its 
various  forms,  is  still  more  frequently  prescribed  than  any 
othei'  by  the  allopathic  physicians.  A  writer  in  the  June 
number,  1868,  of  the  * 'London  Chemist,"  having  submitted 
to  a  careful  examination  one  thousand  prescriptions,  taken 
seriatim  from  the  files  of  a  druggist,  states,  among  other 
curious  facts,  that  mercury  takes  the  lead,  and  stands  promin- 
ently at  the  head  of  the  list.  Mercury,  the  very  name  of 
which  strikes  terror  into  the  mind^  of  nervous  and  timid 
patients,  is  still  the  foremost  remedial  agent  employed  by  the 
medical  profession. 

Professor  Draper,  in  one  of  his  introductory  lecturers,  be- 
fore the  University  College  of  New  York,  makes  the  follow- 
ing statement  : 

"Even  those  of  us  who  have  most  carefully  upheld  our  old  professional  theo- 
ries, and  have  tried  to  keep  in  reverence  the  old  opinions,  and  the  old  times, 
find  that  under  the  advance  of  the  exact  sciences  our  position  is  becoming  un- 
tenable. The  ground  is  slipping  away  from  beneath  our  feet.  We  are  on  the 
brink  of  a  great  revolution.  Go  where  you  will,  among  intelligent  physicians 
you  will  find  a  deep,  though  it  may  be  an  indistinct  perception,  that  a  great 
change  is  imminent." 

The  late  Professor  Mutter  of  Philadelphia,  in  an  introduc- 
tory lecture  a  few  years  ago,  says  : 


12 

"  We  have  in  truth,  rested  contented  in  ideal  knowledge.  We  have  received 
as  perfect,  theories  as  idle  as  day  dreams.  We  have  blindly  accepted  the  fol- 
lies of  the  past ;  and  the  foundation  of  our  art  must  crumble  to  the  earth  imless 
we  learn  more  discretion  and  better  judgment  in  the  selection  of  the  material  of 
which  they  are  to  be  constructed." 

I  might  continue  these  quotations  indefinitely ;  but  I  will 
not  weary  you  by  citing  more,  and  surely,  sufiicient  evidence 
has  already  been  produced  to  sustain  the  allegation  that  th  e 
old  system  of  medicine  is  unworthy  of  our  confidence  ;  that, 
with  no  law  upon  which  to  base  its  principles  o£-ir_eatment; 
its  practice  rests^upon  a  chaotic  mass  of  empirical  experiences, 
groundless  theories,  and  ever-changing  fancies  ;  that  those 
best  acquainted  with  its  principles,  and  the  results  of  its 
practice,  have  the  least  faith  in  its  usefulness  ;  and  that  the 
interests  of  the  suffering,  imperiously  demand  a  revolution  in 
the  method  of  treating  disease,  and  call  for  a  system  more  in 
harmony  with  Nature,  more  reliable  in  its  application,  and 
more  successful  in  its  results. 

This  degraded  state  of  the  medical  practice  was  deeply  felt 
by  Hahnemann,  and  in  1778  he  retired  from  the  practice  of 
medicine  in  disgust  at  its  uncertainties,  after  having  acquired 
fame  as  a  scientific  scholar  and  high  standing  in  his  profes- 
sion, breaking  away  from  the  past  and  opening  a  new  field  of 
glory  to  his  activities,  as  well  as  a  new  era  of  progress  in  the 
medical  art. 

Samuel  Hahnemann  was  a  great  man;  the  discoverer  of  the 
true  law  of  cure,  in  accordance  with  the  principles  and  laws 
of  Nature. 

I  need  not  tell  you,  that  we  maintain  that  this  much-desired 
and  long-looked-for  law  of  cure,  which  is  to  be  a  lamp  to  the 
feet  of  the  physician,  making  plain  his  path,  and  giving  him 
an  unfailing  guide  in  the  application  of  remedies  to  the  re- 
moval of  disease,  not  only  exists,  but  has  been  proclaimed 
to  the  world  by  the  immortal  Hahnemann  in  his  well-known 
focmula  :  Similia  Similihus  Curanturl  But  who  was  Samuel 
Hahnemann?  When  I  say  that  this  great  Reformer  of 
Medicine  was  a  regularly  educated  physician  of  great  learn- 
ing and  unusual  general  culture  and  literary  attainments,  I 


13 

speak  but  feeble  praise  compared  with  the  language  of  Sir 
John  Forbes,  Hahnemann's  most  learned  critic,  where  he 
says: 

"  No  candid  reader  of  his  writings  can  hesitate  for  a  moment  to  admit  that 
he  was  a  very  extraordinary  man  ;  one,  whose  name  will  descend  to  posterity 
as  the  exclusive  excogitator  and  founder  of  an  original  system  of  medicine, 
as  ingenious  as  many  that  preceded  it,  and  destined  to  be  the  remote,  if  not 
the  immediate  cause  of  more  fundamental  changes  in  the  practice  of  the  healing 
art,  than  have  resulted  from  any  promulgated  since  the  days  of  Galen 
himself."  • 

And  he  adds : 

♦»  He  was  undoubtedly  a  man  o  f  genius  and  a  scholar,  a  man  of  indefatigable 
industry  and  of  datmtless  energy." 

The  great  Haller,  says  of  him : 

"  He  is  a  doublehead  of  philosophy  and  wisdom." 

And  HuFELAND,  the  father  of  orthodox  medicine,  speak  s  of 
him  as  one  of  the  most  distinguished  physicians  in  Germany, 
Avhile  the  late  Dr.  Mott  of  New  York,  after  having  visited 
Hahnemann  in  Paris,  speaks  in  the  highest  terms  of  his 
candor,  learning  and  genius. 

It  has  often  been  stated  by  close  observers  of  the  working 
of  Divine  Providence,  that  '*The  darkest  hour  is  just  before 
day,"  and  also,  that  "  The  Creator  ever  wisely  and  well- 
provides  agents  perfectly  adapted  to  carry  out  His  benefici- 
ent  designs  in  the  crisis  of  human  affairs."  History,  both 
sacred  and  profane,  gives  unwavering  and  very  numerous 
evidences  of  the  justice  and  verity  of  these  propositions. 
In  matters  theological  as  well  as  political  this  is  equally  the 
case.  When  there  could  scarcely  be  greater  gloom  or  greater 
danger,  the  wise  Arbiter  of  human  destinies  has  educated, 
nerved,  inspired  and  protected  some  master-spirit,  wha  has 
caused  light  to  shine  out  of  daVkness,  and  peace  and  order  to 
take  the  place  of  chaos  and  destruction.  Never  were  these 
propositions  more  fully  illustrated  than  in  medical  matters 
towards  the  close  of  the  past  century.  All  the  arts  and 
sciences  had  received  the  impetus  of  new  discoveries^;^  The 
inductive  method  of  investigation  had  brought  out  clearly  to 
view  first  principles,  on  which  it  was  easy  for  succeeding 


'      14 

generations  to  build  solid,  stable   and  beautiful  temples  of 
truth. 

Astronomy,  chemistr}^,  botany  and  every  branch  in  Natural 
Philosophy,  instead  of  continuing  mere  matters  of  specula- 
tive theory,  as  they  were  before,  became  sciences.  The_ 
sons  of  JEscuIapius  alone  were  enshrouded  in  an  Egyptian 
darknesf^,  wandering  about  without  guide  and  compass, 
rushing  wildly  to  and  fro  with  instruments  of  deadly  power 
in  their  hands ;  whom  they  Avished  to  heal,  they  slew  ;  and 
tortured  those  whom  they  fondly  hoped  might  find  timely 
rehef  from  sufferings  and  woes  through  their  ministrations. 

The  hearts  of  the  benevolent  were  deeply  pained,  and  the 
conscientious  wavered  in  their  work  when  they  gathered 
statistics  of  the  results  of  their  labor.  A  cry  ascended 
heaven-wards  from  the  practitioners  of  medicine,  the  longing 
for  better  days,  seemed  seconded  by  a  phalanx  of  ghostly 
beings,  who  had  untimely  passed  away  by  means  of  fearful 
treatment,  and  by  the  living  miseries  of  multitudes  of  shape- 
less deformed  ones,  who  ever  stood  unpleasant  and  incontro- 
vertible witnesses  of  the  cruelties  and  barbarities  of  the 
healing  art. 

With  increasing  civilization,  jaew  and  fatal  epidemi^cs 
appeared,  reaping  a  rich  harvest  for  the  grim  monster — 
Death — and  adding  yearly  to  the  per-centage  of  the  ever-in- 
creasing bills  of  mortality.  Many  an  honest  practitioner 
threw  away  lancet  and  saddle-bags  in  despair,  while  quacks 
andjmedical  charlatans,  profiting  by  the  wranglings~o£  the 
regulars,  and  the  weariness  of  the  people,  drove  a  reckless 
but  well-paying  trade,  with  nostrums  of  every^^haracter, 
from  the  deadliest  poison  to  the  simplest  house-hold  herb. 

But  a  brigther  day  was  about  to  dawn. 

In  the  picturesque  town  of  Meissen,  in  the  district  of 
Cur  Saxony,  lived  an  honest  and  worthy  man,  Christian 
Gottfried  Hahnemann,  an  intelligent,  patriotic  and  highly 
esteemed,  though  unassuming  and  unambitious  member  of 
that  community,  by  trade  a  painter  upon  porcelain,  known 
under  the  name  of  Dresden-China. 


16 

On  the  10th  day  of  April,  1755,  he  was  made  happy  by 
the  birth  of  a  son,  whom  he  named  Samuel  Christian  Fred- 
erick. Amidst  all  the  fond  hopes  the  parents  cherished  for 
their  new-born  babe,  little  did  they  imagine  to  what  a  des- 
tiny the  great  Creator  had  appointed  him.  Of  the  mother 
of  this  child  not  very  much  is  known,  save  that  she  was 
modest,  industrious,  intensely  attached  to  her  family,  full 
of  sympathy  with  her  children's  aspirations,  and  ever-ready 
to  aid  them  in  their  schemes  of  pleasure  or  advancement. 
The  infantile  years  of  little  Hahnemann  were  spent  amidst 
scenery  so  strikingly  beautiful,  as  to  impress  his  young 
buoyant  heart,  even  in  those  tender  years,  with  an  admiration 
of  Nature's  handiwork,  and  so  instill  into  him  a  love  of  the 
works  of  God,  which  ever  increased  as  he  grew  older.  He 
was  not  sent  to  school  very  young,  not  until  he  was  eight 
years  old;  this  will  perhaps  partly  account  for  the  fact 
that  when  he  did  go,  he  manifested  an  ardent  thirst  for 
knowledge,  which  was  never  slacked  during  his  long  life-time. 
But  he  did  not  spend  his  first  eight  years  of  life  entirely 
in  play.  Those  health-securing,  physical-exhilarating  and 
developing  exercises  were  occasionally  relieved  by  lessons 
from  his  father,  and  sometimes  from  his  mother,  in  reading 
and  writing,  and  by  frequent  conversations  of  a  religious 
and  moral  character. 

These  conversations  laid  deep  the  foundation  of  that  unde- 
viating  integrity,  fixedness  of  purpose,  unwavering  consci- 
entiousness and  unaffected  reverence  for  the.  Diyi"©  .Being, 
which  ever  characterized  this  Medicaljgeformer  in  afterjife^ 
The  influence  of  this  paternal  conversational  instruction  and 
moral  training  made  him  what  he  was,  as  a  school-boy,  as  a 
college-student,  as  an  author,  a  chemist  aiid  a  physician. 
Untiring  industry,  conscientiousness,  and  a  reliance  upon 
Divine  blessing,  will  in  any  sphere  in  life  secure  success, 
and  Samuel  Hahnemann  was  no  exception  to  the  general 
rule.  In  writing  on  this  subject,  he  says:  "My  father  had 
the  soundest  ideas  on  what  was  to  be  considered  good  and 
worthy  in  man,  and  had  arrived  at  them  by  his  own  inde- 
pendent thought.     He  sought  to  plant  them  in  me,  and  im- 


OF  THE 
TT'XTTTri-'T- 


16 

pressed  on  me  more  by  actions  than  by  words,  tlie  great 
lesson  of  life,  to  act  and  to  be,  not  merely  to  seem !  When 
a  good  work  Avas  going  forward,  there,  often  unobserved,  he 
was  sure  to  be  helping,  hand  to  heart;  shall  I  not  do  likewise? 
In  the  finest  distinctions  between  the  noble  and  the  base,  he 
decided  by  his  actions  with  a  justness  that  did  honor  to  the 
nicety  of  his  sense  of  right  and  wrong.  In  this,  too,  he  was 
my  monitor." 

Such  sterling  qualities,  rooted  in  the  boy's  heart,  and  early 
budding  out  in  his  life,  made  him  beloved  by  all  Avho  came 
in  contact  with  him.  Play-mates,  school-fellows  and  instruct- 
ors not  only  treated  him  with  kindness,  but  with  ardent 
aifection. 

This  school-boy  life  did  not  pass,  however,  without  trials, 
the  greatest  of  which  was  the  disinclination  of  his  father  for 
him  to  continue  his  studies.  It  is  a  little  strangle  that  the 
good  man,  who  himself  possessed  a  keen  power  of  observa- 
tion, did  not  once  suspect  the  future  greatness  of  his  child : 
but  he  was  very  poor,  had  several  other  children  to  support, 
and  doubtless  feared  that  a  thorough  classical  and  scientific 
education  would  give  to  his  son  aspirations  that  would  be 
doomed  to  bitter  disappointment.  His  teacher,  however, 
pleaded  on  his  behalf,  off'ering  to  remit  the  usual  school-fees, 
and  he  was  permitted  to  continue  his  studies  until  he  was 
twenty  years  of  age.  A  proof  of  the  poverty  of  his  parents 
at  this  time,  is  illustrated  by  the  circumstance, that  his  father 
complained  of  the  great  consumption  of  oil  during  young 
Hahnemann's  preparation  of  his  lessons,  and  would  not  per- 
mit him  to  use  the  family  lamp  after  the  other  members  of 
the  household  had  retired :  but  Samuel,  who  was  never  daunted 
by  difficulties,*  or  frustrated  in  a  purpose,  when  he  had 
concluded  that  it  was  legitimate,  manufactured  a  lamp  out  of 
a  lump  of  clay,  and  successfully  coaxed  his  mother  to  supply 
him  with  oil. 

At  the  close  of  his  high  school  term,  young  Hahnemann 
wrote,  as  was  usual  with  those  just  finishing  their  course,  a 
treatise.  He  had  for  some  time  manifested  a  deep  interest 
in  natural  science,  and  particularly  in  the  branches  of  chem- 


17 

istrj^nd^gh^siplpgy.  He  wrote  his  thesis  in  Latin,  choosing 
as  his  subject,  **  The  wisdom  of  God  in  forming  the  Human 
Hand."  This  was  for  his  age,  a  work  of  great  merit,  and  even 
his  father  seemed  to  have  become  proud  of  his  abiUties,  and 
gave  his  free  consent  for  the  studious  boy  to  go  to  Leipzig 
that  he  might  attend  the  lectures  at  the  University,  and 
presented  him  with  all  the  money  he  possibly  could  spare, 
amounting  to  nearly  fifteen  dollars  in  our  currency.  "This," 
says  Hahnemann,  "  was  the  last  money  I  received  from  my 
father."     He  left  his  home  for  Leipzig  on  Easter,  1775. 

He  was  at  first  somewhat  puzzled  by  that  troublesome 
subject,  "the  ways  and  means,"  but  fortunately  becoming 
acquainted  with  two  *rich  Princes  of  Greece,  who  were 
anxious  to  be  instructed  in  the  English  and  French  languages. 
Hahnemann  entered  into  a  lucrative  engagement  with  them 
as  instructor,  and  also  obtained  employment  as  a  translator 
of  medical  .and  philosophical  works.  The  remuneration  he 
received  for  private  teaching  and  translating,  not  only 
enabled  him  to  supply  all  his  moderate  wants  and  purchase 
of  books,  but  he  saved  a  considerable  amount  besides.  In 
order  to  save  so  much,  and  at  the  same  time  attend  faithfully 
upon  all  his  classes,  he  denied  himself  sleep  every  other 
night.  In  1777,  .we  find  him  attending  the  hospitals  of  Vienna 
where  his  excellence  of  character,  and  extent  of  medical 
information,  completely  won  him  the  friendship  and  confi- 
dence of  the  celebrated  Doctor  von  Quarin,  who  perceiving  the 
noble  qualities  and  promising  abilities  of  the  young  man, 
adopted  him  as  a  special  protege.  Hahnemann  says  of  him, 
'*  To  him  I  owe  my  claims  to  be  reckoned  as  a  physician.  I 
had  his  love  and  friendship."  After  this,  he  visited  the 
University  of  Erlangen,  where  he  graduated,  receiving  the 
degree  of  Doctor  of  Medicine  on  the  10th  of  August,  1779. 
At  this  time,  an  earnest  longing  for  the  air  of  Saxony  and 
the  scenery  of  his  native  district  seems  to  have  taken  pos- 
session of  him.  After  having  occupied  several  prominent 
positions,  the  government  offered  him  the  ofiice  of  District 
Physician  in  Gommern,  which  he  accepted  in  1782. 

After  three  years  residence  in  Gommern,  during  which 


18 

time  he  had  married,he  became  tired  of  professional  idleness — 
as  he  expresses  himself — and  we  find  him  removing  to  Dres- 
den. For  about  a  year  he  occupied  the  position  as  superin- 
tendent of  the  public  hospitals  of  that  city.  His  conscience 
however,  began  to  be  much  troubled  by  the  conviction  that 
medicine  as  then  practiced  proved  worse  than  useless  to  the 
majority  of  patients.  He  retired  from  the  practice  of_ 
medicine  in  disgust  at  its  uncertainties,  occupying  himself 
solely  with  chemistry  and  literary  labor. 

The  humanity  and  integrity  of  Hahnemann  is  plainly 
portrayed  in  a  letter  to  the  venerable  Hufeland,  where  he 
.'gives  his  own  account  of  the  reasons  which  induced  him  at 
this  time  to  retire  from  practice.     He  writes : 

*'  It  was  painful  for  me  to  grope  in  the  dark,  guided  only  by  our  books  in 
the  treatment  of  the  sick — to  prescribe  according  to  this  or  that  fanciful  view  of 
the  nature  of  diseases,  substances  that  only  owed  to  mere  opinion  their  place  in 
the  Materia  Medica.  I  had  conscientious  scruples  about  treating  unknown 
morbid  states  in  my  suffering  fellow- creatures  with  these  unknown  medicines; 
which,  being  powerful  substances,  might,  if  they  were  not  exactly  suitable, 
(and  how  could  the  physician  know  whether  they  were  suitable  or  not,  seeing 
that  their  peculiar  special  actions  were  not  yet  elucidated  ?),  easily  change  life 
into  death,  or  produce  new  affections  or  chronic  ailments,  which  are  often  much 
more  difficult  to  remove  than  the  original  disease.  To  become  in  this  way  a_ 
murderer,  or  an  aggravator  of  the  sufferings  of  mankind,  was  to  me  a  fearful 
thought.  So  fearful  and  distressing  was  it,  that  shortly  after  my  marriage  I 
abandoned  the  practice,  and  scarcely  treated  any  one  for  fear  of  doing  him 
harm." 

In  1789,  he  settled  in  Leipzig,  and  numerous  writings  and 
translations,  which  have  been  often  quoted  by  the  best  wri- 
ters ever  since,  came  from  his  pen  during  that  period.  We 
come  now  to  the  year  1790,  in  which  the  first  thought  of 
Homoeopathy  issued  from  the  brain  of  the  great  father  and 
founder  of  the  new  school  of  medicine.  It  has  already  been 
hinted  that  Halmemann  had  felt  an  intense  desire  to  obtain 
some  clear,  safe  and  philosophical  guide  to  the  therapeutic 
action  of  drugs. 

He  vvas  called  upon  to  tra-islate  ''Cullen's  Materia  Medica," 
and  as  he  progressed  in  the  description  of  one  medical  sub- 
stance after  another,  he  could  not  but  feel  a  renewal  of  the 
earnest  longing  he  had  so  often   cherished,  to  clear  medical 


19 

science  from  the  clouds  of  mist  and  uncertainty  in  which  it, 
had  continued  from  the  time  of  Hippocrates. 

The  workings  of  his  mind,  and  the  character  of  the  man,  at 
this  time  will  be  best  understood  by  a  quotation  from  the 
letter  he  wrote   to   Hufeland,  where  he  says : 

**  Having  briefly  reviewed,  the  sad  experience  of  the  systems  of  Sydenham 
and  Hoffmann,  of  Boerhave  and  Glaubius,  of  Stahl,  Cullen  and  de  Hean,"  he 
continues, 

*•  But  it  is,  perhaps,  the  very  nature  of  this  art,  as  great  men  have  asserted 
that  it  is  incapable  of  attaining  any  greater  certainty.     Shameful,  blasphemous 
thought !     What !  shall  it  be  said  that  the  inRnite  wisdom  of  the  Eternal  Spirit, 
that  animates  the  universe,  could  not  produce  remedies  to  allay  the  sufferings 
of  the  diseases  He  allows  to  arise?     The  all-loving  paternal  goodness  of  Him, 
whom  no  name  worthily  designates,  who  richly  supplies  all  wants,  even  the 
scarcely  conceivable  wants  of  the  insect  in  the  dust,  imperceptible  by  reason  of 
its   minuteness  to   the  keenest   human  eye,    and   who   despenses   throughout 
creation,  life  and    happiness  in  rich  abundance,  shall  it  be  said  that  He  is 
capable  of  the  tyranny  of  not  permitting  that  man,  made  in  his  image,  should 
by  the  efforts  of  his  penetrating  mind,  that  has  been  breathed  into  him  from 
above,  find  out  the  way  to  discover  remedies  in  the  stupendous  kingdom  of 
creation,  which  should  be  able  to  deliver  mankind  from  their  sufferings,  worse 
than  death  itself?     Shall  He,  the  Father  of  all,  behold  with  indifference  the 
martyrdom  of  his  best-beloved  creatures  by  disease,  and  yet  render  it  imposs- 
ible to  the  genius  of  man,  to  whom  all  else  is  possible,  to  find  any  method,  any 
easy,  sure,  trust-worthy  method,  whereby  they  may   see  diseases  from  their 
proper  point  of  view,  and  whereby  they  may  interrogate  medicines  as  to  their 
special  uses,  as  to  what  they  are  really,  surely  and  positively  serviceable  for  ? 
Well,  thought  I,  as  there  must  be  a  sure  and  trust-worthy  method  of  treatment, 
as  certainly  as  God  is  the  wisest  and  most  beneficient  of  Beings,  I  shall  seek  it 
no  longer  in  the  thorny  thicket  of  ontological  explanations,      *       *       *      nor 
in  the  authoritative  declarations  of  celebrated  men.     No ;  let  me  seek  it  where 
it  lies  nearest  at  hand,  and  where  it  has  hitherto  been  passed  over  by  all, 
because  it  did  not  seem  sufficiently  recondite,  nor  sufficiently  learned,  and  was 
not  hung  with  laurels  for  those  who  displayed  most  talent  for  constructing 
systems,  for  scholastic  speculation,  and  transcendental  abstractions." 

With  these  high  and  noble  feelings,  his  mind  was  fully 
awake  to  any  suggestion  that  might  be  derived  from  the 
material  before  him. 

For  fortyj[f^jxgJi£_c.nrried  nnji,  spri^s  "f   wpII -planned jind 
wSU^Scdated  experiments  to_as.aeilain^ 
poweT'of"  drugs^when  admi.nistere.d  tQ,..persons  in  liealth . 
FrienJsTmedical  and  lay,  were  brought  into  requisitian,  and 


X 


.all  possible  means  taken  to  secure  the  greatest  accuracy;  for 
Hahnemann  already  began  to  feel  that  he  was  God's  agent  of 
mercy,  through  whose  happy  discovery  and  labors  future 
generations  would  be  greatly  blessed. 

He  found  but  little  opportunity  to  test  his  newly-discovered 
law  of  cure  while  he  remained  in  Leipzig,  and  poverty 
compelled  him  to  labor  with  his  pen  most  indefatigably,  as 
was  evidenced  by  the  large  number  of  essays  and  transla- 
tions published  at  that  time. 

Providence,  however,  interfered  in  his  behalf;  the  reigning 
Duke  of  Saxe  Gotha  offered  him  the  position  of  Physician  to 
the  Asylum  for  the  Insane  in  Georgenthal,  in  the  Thuringen 
Forest.  He  entered  upon  his  duties  in  1792.  While  at  the 
head  of  this  establishment,  he  succeeded  in  affecting  a  cure 
which  created  some  sensation,  because  the  party  concerned 
was  the  Hanoverian  Minister,  Klockenbring,  who  was  ren- 
dered insane  by  a  lampoon  written  by  Kotzebue.  He  also 
introduced  a  mild  and  humane  treatment  for  the  insane,  re- 
moving the  chains  and  tight-jacket,  heretofore  in  use, 

In  1810,  he  published  his  greatest  work,  "The  Organon," 
which  ran  through  five  editions,  and  was  translated  into  most 
all  the  living  languages.  From  1810  to  1821,  we  find  him 
again  in  Leipzig,  publishing  his  Materia  31edica,  and  lectur- 
ing twice  a  week  in  the  University,  at  the  same  time  attend- 
ing to  a  multitude  of  patients. 

In  1821,  Hahnemann  was  induced  by  the  reigning  Duke  of 
Anhalt-Coethen,  who  was  his  warm  friend  and  admirer, 
to  change  his  place  of  residence,  and  appointed  him  his  Phy- 
sician. He  accepted  the  position.  He  soon  began  to  work 
as  earnestly  as  before  in  proving  medicines  and  prescribing 
for  his  patients,  who  came  from  all  parts  of  Europe. 

On  one  occasion,  during  his  residence  in  Coethen,  he 
recieved  a  visitor  who  had  heard  a  great  deal  of  Hahnemann 
and  his  garden,  and  who  had  imagined  the  garden  to  be  as 
large  as  its  owner  was  great.  When  he  was  ushered  into 
the  presence  of  the  Prophet  of  Medicine  and  found  him  seated 
at  a  table  in  a  summer-house,  only  a  few  yards  from  the 
dwelling,  he  exclaimed:  "But  where  is  the  garden?"  To  which 


21 

Hahnemann  replied,  "This  is  the  garden."     "Surely,"  rejoined  • 
the  visitor,  "Not  this  narrow  patch  of  ground?'     "True,  it 
is  very   narrow   and  very   short,    but   observe   its   infinite 
height,"  said  the  Sage,  pointing  upwards  to   the   blue   sky 
overhead. 

The  tenth  of  August,  1829,  was  a  joyful  day  for  the  vener- 
able old  man,  being  the  fifteenth  anniversary  of  his  obtaining 
the  degree  of  M.  D.  Gratifying  and  memorable  in  more  than 
one  respect  was  this  day  for  him. 

I  refrain  from  giving  you  a  full  description  of  this  impres- 
sive celebration,  lest  I  should  be  considered  tedious,  yet  I 
cannot  thus  pass  over  historical  facts,  without  dwelling  upon 
a  few  of  the  principal  features  of  this  gratifying  and  memora- 
ble festivity. 

The  early  morning  found  assembled  a  large  number  of  the 
friends  of  Hahnemann,  his  disciples;  deputations  from  various 
cities;  also  deputations  from  the  Universities  of  Leipzig, 
Vienna  and  Erlangen,  Avhich  presented  him  with  the  Diploma 
of  Honor.  The  King  of  Saxony,  the  Duke  of  Saxe  Gotha 
and  many  others  had  sent  costly  presents  from  far  and  near. 
His  dwelling  having  been  appropriately  prepared  for  the 
celebration,  and  on  a  table,  resembling  an  altar,  adorned  with 
flowers  and  entwined  with  oak  leaves,  was  placed  a  well 
executed  bust  of  Hahnemann. 

After  Hahnemann  was  introduced,  his  bust  was  crowned 
with  laurels,  amid  appropriate  addresses  and  congratulations. 
With  deep  emotion,  the  venerable  old  man  in  heartfelt  and 
afiecting  words,  gave  thanks  to  the  Supreme  Being  that  he  had 
been  permitted  to  make  so  great  a  discovery,  and  was  so  fa- 
vored with  a  long  life,  full  of  bodily  and  mental  vigor. 

A  year    after    this    importajnt_  occurr^icej^tl^ 
Cholera^  came   marching  from_yieL.East,JbL_.il^ 
This  aroused  the  medical  profession  in  .general.     Physicians 
were  helpless,  and  none  of  them  had  ever  seen  a  case  of  this    .. 
fearful  disease.     But  Hahnemann,  after  learning  the  symp- 
toms of  the  disease,  advised  the  mode  of  treatment  by  which 
the  mortalitxpf  that  terrible  scourge  was  tlireefold  reduced, 
and  numerous   testimonials  were   published,   showing    the 


22 

immense  success  of  his  mode  of  treatment.  In  1831,  he  lost 
his  partner  in  life,  having  been  married  forty-nine  years  and 
a  few  months. 

About  four  years  after  the  death  of  his  wife,  a  most  inter- 
esting, intelligent  and  estimable  lady,  applied  to  Hahnemann 
for  advice  for  lung  and  heart  disease.  It  has  been  humor- 
ously stated  that  though  the  lung  disease  was  effectually 
cured,  the  trouble  of  the  heart  must  have  assumed  a  chronic 
form,  for  the  fascinating  Parisienne  seemed  deeply  enamored 
with  the  great  doctor.  She  was  35  years  of  age,  the  daugh- 
ter of  Louis  Jerome  Cohier,  formerly  Minister  of  Justice  and 
President  and  Director  of  the  French  Republic,  her  name 
was  Marie  Melanie  d'Herville  Cohier.  This  lady  of  position 
and  wealth  offered  her  hand  to  the  octogenarian,  which  he 
accepted,  and  after  having  divided  his  considerable  fortune 
among  his  children,  upon  which  his  yoimg  wife  insisted,  he 
was  induced  by  her  to  pass  the  rest  of  his  life  in  Paris, 
where  he  enjoyed  a  great  reputation  till  his  death,.,  which 
took  place  July  2nd,  1843.  On  the  centenary  of  his  birth- 
day in  1855,  a  statute  was  erected  to  his  memory  at  Leipzig. 

To  complete  the  picture  of  this  great  man,  I  have  to  cite 
from  a  letter  written  by  Dr.  Jahr  in  Paris  on  the  fourth  of 
July  1843,  where  he  says : 

"  Hahnemann  is  dead !  In  fact,  dear  friends,  our  venerable  father  had 
finished  his  career.  A  pulmonary  paralysis  had  set  him  free,  after  an  illness 
of  six  weeks,  finally  liberating  the  great  soul  from  its  earthly  tenement.  To 
the  last  moment,  he  was  in  the  possession  of  his  mental  faculties.  *  *  * 
In  the  commencement  of  that  illness  he  announced  that  it  would  be  his  last,  as 
his  body  was  worn  out.  At  first  he  prescribed  for  himself,  and  nearly  to  the 
period  of  his  death  delivered  his  opinion  of  the  remedies  offered  him  by  his 
wife  and  Dr.  Chartran.  *  *  *  When  his  wife,  on  account  of  a  fit 
of  sufibcation,  said  to  him,  'Providence  ought  to  exempt  you  from  these 
sufferings,  as  you  have  relieved  so  many,  and  endured  such  numerous  persecu- 
tions,' he  replied,  'Mis :  why  me  f  Every  otie  works  according  to  the  abilities  and 
poivers  xchich  Providence  has  hestoioed  iqwn  him.  Superiority  or  inferiority  exists 
only  before  the  tribunal  of  men,  not  before  that  of  Providence.  Providence  owes 
nothing  to  me,  but  I  a?n  indebted  to  Providence  for  all.'  " 

I  leave  these  memorable  words,  for  every  one  to  deduce 
from  them  the  natural  conclusion,  and  especially  as  truly 
illustrative  of  the  character  of  Hahnemann.     The  grand  old 


2a 

man,  at  80  years  of  age,  launched  himself  upon  a  new  career 
in  the  capital  of  France.  In  three  years  we  find  him  making 
an  income  of  200,000  francs  a  year  from  his  professional 
exertions,  and  giving  gratuitous  advice  to  crowds  of  the  poor. 

Year  after  year  his  wonderful  successes  brought  him  a 
rapid  increase  to  even  this  large  income.  In  his  89th  year 
he  died  and  left  a  fortune  of  4,000,000  francs,  nearly  a  million 
of  dollars. 

Seldom  has  a  man  ended  his  days  in  so  glorious  a  sunset, 
oi«  in  a  surer  hope  for  the  future. 

The  merit  of  Hahnemann,  and  that  for  which  we  ought  to 
bless  his  name  and  cherish  his  memory,  is  his  rejection  of 
theory  and  the  establishment  of  the  curative  art  upon  the  solid 
foundation  of  science.  All  that  was  merely  speculative  he 
rejected  as  unsafe,  and  sought  by  pure  experiment  and  ob- 
jective observation,  to  find  out  Nature's  law  of  cure.  Taking 
nothing  for  truth  that  could  not  be  proved  by  experiment,  he, 
by  careful  and  untiring  observation,  obtained  from  Nature 
the  answer  that  Similia  Similihus  Curantur  was  the  law  of 
cure,  the  only  scientific  law  to  heal  disease. 

This  science  is  not  wafted  to  and  fro  by  the  winds  of 
opinion  and  supposition.  It  is  through  its  organic  unity, 
as  firm  and  unchanging  as  Nature  itself.  In  it  all  medical 
men  must  agree,  because  the  reign  of  supposition  has  been 
replaced  by  that  of  facts,  and  all  animated  by  the  spirit  of 
progress  will  work  actively  and  earnestly  in  promoting 
science  and  the  art  of  healing  for  their  own  benefit,  and 
that  of  suffering  hnmanity  in  general.  To  get  such  a  science 
recognized  and  spread  over  the  world,  is  undoubtedly  a 
noble  problem  of  the  age.  Hahnemann  also  discovered  by 
experiment  and  pure  objective  observation,  that  disease  ren- 
ders the  organization  wonderfully  sensitive  to  their  specific 
remedies,  so  that  the  mere  smell  of  the  specific  drug  can,  in 
many  cases  effect  a  cure ;  and  that  in  all  cases,  a  very  small 
dose  of  the  true  remedy  is  all  that  is  required;  so  small  as 
to  have  no  effect  whatever  on  the  organism  in  a  state  of 
health;  and  further,   that  large  doses,  even  of  the  proper 


24 

remedy,  are  not  only  useless,  but  hurtful,  being  calculated  to 
aggravate  the  disease  and  endanger  vitality. 

Time  will  not  permit  me  to  attempt  here  an  elucidation  of 
the  principles  and  doctrines  promulgated  by  Hahnemann; 
yet  I  wish  to  notice  briefly  some  of  the  results  following  the 
introduction  of  Homoeo]3athy  into  the  medical  Avorld.  It  is 
now  about  seventy-five  years  since  Hahnemann  made  public, 
and  taught  this  new  system  of  medicine.  The  bold  reformer 
and  his  disciples  w^ere  XDersecuted,  ridiculed  and  scorned  in 
every  manner  by  the  so-called  orthodox  doctors,  who 
declared  their  principles  so  ridiculous  and  nonsensical,  th^t 
it  would  be  below  the  dignity  of  a  scientific  man  to  make 
himself  acquainted  with  the  hiAvs  and  practice  of  Homoeop- 
athy. But  Homoeopathy  in  the  theoretical  and  practical 
proofs  of  its  universal  importance,  deserves  to  be  ranked 
among  the  most  important  discoveries  of  the  age,  and  as  one 
of  tho  most  beneficial  discoveries  that  humanity  has  ever 
be6n  blessed  with. 

Men  of  the  highest  standing  in  the  profession  have  given 
their  unqualified  indorsement  of  its  foundation  as  an  indispu- 
table law  of  Nature,  and  of  its  right  to  be  considered  high 
in  the  order  of  science. 

The  trutli.  of  i,ts  principles  lias  been  practically  proven  by 
its  success,  not  only  in  isolated^ases,  but  in  great  epidemics, 
as  those  of  dysentery,  cholera,  yellow  fever,  typhus,  small- 
pox, scarlet  fever,  measles,  diptheria,  etc.;  and  this^  too,  in 
so  conspicuous  a  manner,  that  year  after  year,  it  has  forced 
its  way  into  larger  and  higher  circles,  and  is  now  practiced  in 
all  countries  by  a  large  number  of  scientific  and  intelligent 
physicians,  who,  after  having  studied  and  practiced  for  a 
longer  or  shorter  length  of  time  the  murderous  system  of 
Allopathy,  are  acquainted  with  both,  and  have  given  the 
pfetSrence  to  Homoeopathy,  only  after  mature  reflection, 
investigation  and  numerous  comparisons  of  the  result  of 
both  systems  in  their  practice. 

The  great  majority  of  Old-School  ph3^sicians,  only  know 
Homoeopathy  by  hearsay,  and  look  upon  it  through  the  dim 
glasses  of  the  prejudices  of  the  past.     None  of  those  w^ho 


25 

have  abused  Homoeopathy  have  previously  examined  and 
studied  the  matter  thoroughly,  because  all  those  who  have 
conscientiously  done  this,  have  soon  been  converted  to  the 
truth  of  the  system  and  have  adopted  its  practice. 

In  the  ranks  of  the  practitioners  and  believers  in  Homoe- 
opathy, we  see  physicians  whose  writings  prove,  and  to  whom 
nobody  can  deny  an  extended  and  profound  medical  knowl- 
edge, as  well  as  judgment.  Homoeopathy  can  boast  of  a 
rich  and  scientific  literature,  and  a  great  number  of  pro- 
found writings  in  all  the  languages  of  the  civilized  world. 

Homoeopathy  is  a  vast  and  steadily  growing  power  in  the 
medical  and  scientific  world,  demanding  earnestly  the  atten- 
tion of  every  intelligent  man.  Its  real  merit  may  be  partially 
measured  b}'  the  strength  of  obstacles  it  has  had  to  overcome. 

Homoeopathy  is  a  reform  in  the  central  and  main  field  of 
medical  practice,  a  reform  effected  by  the  discovery  of  a 
greatand  true  therapeutic  law,  and  by  the  construction  of  a 
new  Materia  Medica,  which  reveals  to  us  the  disease-produc- 
ing properties  of  drugs.  It  has  rendered  pathology  the 
highest  service  -by  making  that  great  branch  of  medical 
science  truly  practical;  for,  an  exact  parallel  functional  and 
organic  law  between  the  phenomena  of  diseases  and  drugs 
is  necessary  to  the  scientific  selection  of  homoeopathic  medi- 
cines. By  its  great  therapeutic  law,  it  has  introduced  new 
light,  order,  beauty  and  efficiency  into  the  theory  and  prac- 
tice of  medicine.  It  has  cured  thousands  of  cases  of  chronic 
disease,  beyond  the  reach  of  allopathic  art,  and  has  treated 
all  acute  diseases  with  admirable  ease  and  success.  In  great 
epidemics,  it  proved  always  superior  to  the  old  system.  _I_ 
was  converted^  by  experiencing  the  jwonjie.rful[_effects  of 
homoeopathic  medicine  on  royseUT^utparticularly  by  wEne^-_, 
ing  the  triumphs  of  Homoeopathy  ih'the  treatment^  ofjbhe , 
Asiatic  cholera,  in  the  terrible  epidemic  of  IBl"9-'50  and  '51. 

Allopathic  mortality  was       :         :  :     "     :  :         of>  y '  c. 

Homoeopathic  mortality  was  :  :  :  :         12  (^  c. 

In  yellow  fever,  its  success  was  equally  surprising. 
Drs.  Davis  and  Holcombe  treated  over  a  thousand  cases  at 


26 

Natchez  in  1853  and  '55,  with  a  mortality  of  7  per  cent.  Al- 
lopathy lost  two-thirds  of  its  patients.  On  account  of  this 
great  victory,  they  were  elected  physicians  and  surgeons  of 
the  Mississippi  State  Hospital,  which  was  till  then  under  allo- 
pathic government.  The  reports  from  that  Institution  are 
triumphs  to  Homoeopathy  up  to  the  present  day,  and  con- 
firmatory of  the  superiority  of  this  system  of  medical  treat- 
ment. 

Homoeopathy  has  saved  thousands  of  cases  from  surgical 
operations,  and  has  introduced  safety  into  the  lying-in-room 
of  woman.  It  has  been  a  blessing  to  children,  and  to 
mothers  incalculably  beneficial.  It  has  been  found  equally 
useful  in  the  diseases  of  animals,  and  many  veterinary  insti- 
tutions have  been  established  for  its  practice. 

Finally,  it  has  shortened  the  average  duration  of  disease, 
diminished  the  expense  of  treatment  enormously,  economized 
the  vital  resources  of  the  patient,  and  delivered  its  friends 
from  the  frequently  baneful  and  long-lasting  effects  of  enor- 
mous doses  of  medicine. 

In  conclusion,  I  will  give  a  few  statistics,  from  different 
and  reliable  authorities;  but  first,  the  testimony  of  Dr.  Routh, 
an  eminent  Allopathic  physician  of  London,  given  under  cir- 
cumstances which  make  it  significant  and  interesting. 

In  1852,  Dr.  Routh  published  in  London  a  book  which  he 
entitled  the  "Fallacies  of  Homoeopathy,"  which  he  says  he 
was  constrained  to  do,  because 

"This  system  of  medical  practice  has  of  late  unfortunately  made,  and  continues 
to  make,  such  progress  in  this  country,  and  the  metropolis  in  particular,  and  is 
daily  extending  its  influence  even  among  the  most  learned,  and  those  whose 
high  positions  in  society  gives  them  no  little  moral  power  over  the  opinions  of 
the  multitude,  that  our  profession  is,  I  think,  bound  to  make  it  the  subject  of 
inquiry  and  investigation." 

To  that  end,  he  collected  statistics  of  different  hospitals,  to 
the  number  of  thirty-two  thousand  six  hundred  and  fifty 
cases,  treated  in  homoeopathic  hospitals,  and  compared  them 
with  an  equal  number  of  cases  from  old-school  hospitals. 
He_was  astonished  to  find  that  the  average  mo>rtality  under 
allopathic  treatment  was  10.5!  "^  c;  while  under  homoeopathic 
treatment  it  was  only  4.4  '^  c.     Still  he  was  honest  enough 


27 

to  publish  the  results.  He  further  states  that,  proportionally 
to  the  number  of  beds,  in  homoeopathic  hospitals  there  are 
twice  as  many  patients  admitted  and  cured,  as  in  allopathic 
hospitals. 

He  also  states  that  the  mean  duration  of  treatment  in 
pneumonia  was 

Homoeopathic,        :        ;        :        :        :        :        :        llf  days. 
Allopathic,  :         :         :         :         :         :         :         :    29     days. 

After  visiting  Vienna,  Dr.  Routh  gives  the  following  sta- 
tistics of  cases  of  inflammation  of  the  lungs,  treated  respect- 
ively in  the  Homoeopathic  and  Allopathic  Hospitals  of  that 
city. 

Allopathic  mortality        :        :        :        :        :        :        23  ^  c. 
Homoeopathic  mortality         :         :         :         :         :         :      6  ^  c. 

Here,  then,  is  allopathic  testimony,  the  most  conclusive; 
that,  in  this  fatal  disease,  the  old  system  involves  a  mortal- 
ity of  ^B  "^  c,  while  that  of  Homoeopathy  is  only  5  "^  c. — just 
about  one-fifth  I 

I  have  in  my  possession,  and  could  adduce  here,  numerous 
equally  valuable  statistics,  but  as  I  have  already  trespassed 
upon  your  time,  I  will  sum  up  the  whole  in  a  carefully  pre- 
pared table  of  several  life  insurance  companies  which  have 
investigated  the  influence  of  medical  treatment  as  affecting 
human  life,  and  from  which  they  feel  authorized  in  off"ering 
an  annual  reduction  of  15  "^  c.  to  practical  homoeopathists. 
We  find  the  "Atlantic  Mutual"  making  the  following  deduc- 
tions : 

First.     "That  practical  Homoeopathists  enjoy  more  robust  health." 

Second.     "That  they  are  less  frequently  attacked  by  disease. 

Third.  "When  attacked,  they  recover  more  rapidly  than  those  treated  by 
any  other  system." 

Fourth.  "That  the  mortality  in  the  more  fatal  forms  of  disease  is  small  com- 
pared with  that  under  Allopathic  treatment." 

Fifth.  "That  many  diseases,  which  are  incurable  under  any  other  system, 
are  curable  under  Homoeopathic  treatment." 

This  statement  is  followed  by  a  general  summary  from 
carefully  prepared  tables,  comprising  a  large  mass  of  statis- 
tics, collected  from  ail  parts  of  the  world,  and  embracing  the 


28 

records  of  the  treatment  of  some  300.000  cases  of  disease. 
We  find  that  the  ratio  of  mortality  between  Homoeopathic  and 
Allopathic  treatment,  omitting  the  fractions,  to  be, — 

In  General  diseases       ,         .         .         .         .         .       as    4  to  13 

'«  Cholera, as  16  to  49 

"  Typhus  fever, as    8  to  33 

"  Yellow  fever^ as    5  to  43 

"Pneumonia, as    5  to  31 

The  general  average  of  all  diseases  being  as  8  to  34,  while 
the  average  length  of  sickness  under  the  two  systems,  is  as 
2  to  3,  a  clear  gain  of  over  fifty  '^  c.  is  shown  in  favor  of 
Homoeopathy. 

The  inquiry  will  here  naturally  arise  : —  Why  is  it  that,  if 
the  Homoeopathic  system  presents  such  superior  results,  that 
it  has  not  been  adopted  by  the  profession  generally?  While 
its  adherents  may  with  pride  refer  to  its  rapid  growth  in 
this  countr}^,  its  practitioners  having  increased  from  6  in 
1830  to  over  6,000  in  1871;  yet,  if  fee  system  is  all  that  its 
adherents  claim,  why  should  it  still  meet  with  the  most 
bitter  opposition  of  the  old  school,  instead  of  that  hearty 
acceptance  which  its  merits  would  seem  to  demand  ?  * 

Before  answering  this  question,  let  us  see  how  the  medical 
profession,  and  professors  of  other  branches  of  science  have 
received  the  several  great  discoveries  of  the  last  four  hun- 
dred years. 

Copernicus,  Avho  taught  that  the  sun  is  stationary;  that 
the  planets  revolve  around  the  sun,  and  that  the  apparent 
revolution  of  the  heavens  is  caused  by  the  rotation  of  the 
earth  on  its  axis, — a  system  now  generally  received  and 
acknowledged,  was  persecuted  nearly  to  death.  I  found, 
only  twenty  years  ago,  a  sect  of  people  in  Wisconsin,  who 
still  disbelieved  this  great  fact,  that  the  earth  moves  around 
the  sun. 

Gallileo,  after  being  converted  to  the  Copernican  theory 
of  the  revolution  of  the  earth  around  the  sun,  and  after 
having  improved  the  telescope  of  Copernicus,  invited  his 
fellow-professors    to    make   these   observations   with  him. 


They  absolutely  refused  to  even  look  through  Gallileo's 
telescope,  and  after  he  had  demonstrated  to  them  by  actual 
experiment,  that  the  trifling  difference  in  the  falling  of  two 
unequal  weights  is  owing  only  to  the  resistance  of  the  air, 
and  after  making  the  experiment  twice  before  the  eyes  of 
his  opposers  in  dropping  two  unequal  weights  from  the 
tower  of  Pisa,  they  did  not  believe  it.  He  also  was  perse- 
cuted through  life. 

Franklin's  electric  experiments  were  received  in  like  man- 
ner. After  they  had  been  read  before  the  Royal  Society, 
they  were  considered  worthless,  and  he  earned  nothing  but 
ridicule  and  abuse. 

So  it  was  with  Fulton,  when  he  was  moving  upon  the 
Hudson  River  with  his  imperfect  steamcraft  before  the  eyes 
of  the  people;  they  said  it  was  impossible,  and  could  not  be 
done.  Yes,  they  denied  the  fact,  and  declared  him  insane 
after  he  had  done  it. 

Harvey,  w^ho  discovered  and  taught  that  there  is  an 
arterial  circulation  of  blood  through  the  human  system,  was 
persecuted  through  life,  his  professional  enemies  styling  him 
the  ** Circulator,"  a  word,  in  its  original  Latin,  synifying 
vagabond  or  quack. 

In  the  light  of  these  facts,  it  was  not  surprising  that 
Hahnemann,  after  the  promulgation  of  his  doctrine,  meets ' 
the  same  fate,  and  from  that  day  to  the  present,  the  most 
bitter  denunciations  have  been  poured  by  the  Old  School, 
not  only  upon  him,  but  on  all  w^ho  have  adopted,  or  have 
investigated  his  method. 

But  Time  ever  rectifies  the  mistakes  of  mankind.  The 
value  of  the  discoveries  of  all  these  great  men  has  long 
since  been  acknowledged  by  the  world;  and  the  day  will 
and  must  surely  arrive,  when  the  little  acorn  of  Truth, 
planted  by  Hahnemann,  which  has  already  taken  deep  root, 
and  is  lifting  high  its  vigorous  stem,  shall  tower  far  above  all 
other  giants  of  the  medical  forest,  and  its  wide-spreading 
branches  cast  their  beneficent  shadows  over  the  whole 
earth. 

F.  HILLER,  M.  D. 
San  Francisco,  April  10th,  1872. 


cc 


Homoeopathy  and 

Regular   Medicineo'' 


The  editor  of  tlie  Buffalo  Medical  and  Surgical  Journal 
(old  school)  had  a  sudden  spasm  of  good  sense — a  condition 
none  too  frequent  with  our  Allopathic  brethren,  and  during 
the  attack,  allowed  the  following  communication  to  appear  in 
the  pages  of  his  journal. 

To   the  Editor  of  the  Buffalo  Iledical  and  Surgical  Journal: 

It  will  be  to  the  advantage  of  the  regular  medical  profession  to  go  carefully- 
over  their  treatment  of  the  class  of  physicians  who  have  seen  fit  to  denominate 
themselves  homoeopathic,  and  to  observe  the  effect  such  treatment  has  had 
upon  the  profession  itself,  upon  the  public  and  upon  homoeopathy. 

That  the  accumulated  experience  of  faithful  observers,  who,  for  the  last  four 
thousand  years  have  given  their  lives  to  the  study  and  treatment  of  diseases,  is, 
we  believe,  of  almost  invaluable  importance  to  one  who  wishes  to  become  a 
physician,  and  certainly  is  of  infinite  importance  when  compared  with  a  hypo- 
thetical dogma,  and  yet,  with  aU  the  machinery  of  our  hospitals  and  dispensa  - 
ries,  the  control  of  every  medical  appointment  in  the  gift  of  governments  or 
corporations,  with  our  medical  schools  perfectly  equipped  with  professors  for 
every  separate  department  of  medicine,  and  an  entire  monopoly  of  the  advan- 
tages of  clinical  observations,  with  all  these  advantages  and  precedents,  what 
headway  have  we  made  m  convincing  the  public  and  individuals  of  our  supe  - 
rior  ability  to  manage  disease,  or  of  our ^ecuhar  fitoess  for  becoming  the  san- 
itary officers  jof  households  or  communities  ? 

The  line  of  treatment  which  the  regular  profession  stnv  fit  to  adopt  in  the 
earliest  days  of  homoeopathy,  and  which  they  are  still  following,  is  generally 


31 

bigoted,  and  universally  intolerant  opposition.  What  is  the  effect  of  this  oppo- 
sition ?  It  is  to  arouse  in  the  public  mind  that  generous  American  sentiment 
which  ever  asserts  itself  to  see  fair  play  between  a  big  boy  and  a  little  one. 
There  is  scarcely  an  instance  in  which  the  regular  profession,  with  all  its  accu- 
mulated prestige,  has  arrayed  itself  against  homoeopathy,  where  the  weaker 
party  have  not  prevailed.  And  to-day,  in  the  sight  of  the  law,  and  in  the 
confidence  of  the  people,  homoeopathy  is  the  peer  of  regular  medicine. 

It  becomes  us  to  go  over  this  case,  and,  if  possible,  discover  why,  we  so 
strong  in  numbers,  and  in  all  the  facilities  and  appliances  for  illustrating  and 
inforcing  our  tenets,  are  so  repeatedly  beaten  ?  Why  is  it  that  individuals  and 
corporations  are  becoming  convinced  that  their  interests  require  them  to  em- 
ploy homoeopathic  in  preference  to  regular  physicians  ?  For  myself,  in  spite 
of  the  logic  of  events,  I  still  believe,  and  my  belief  is  founded  upon  a  thorough 
investigation  of  the  principles  of  homoeopathy,  and  observations  upon  the 
practice  of  many  of  its  most  distinguished  disciples,  that  in  no  way  can  a  man 
so  efficiently  equij)  himself  for  the  responsibility  of  the  management  of  disease. 
and  the  custody  of  health  as  in  the  study  of  regular  medicine. 

If  we  take  it  for  granted  that  the  past  experience  and  observations  of  phy- 
sicians are  of  service  to  physicians  at  present,  and  I  do  not  think  we  will  be 
charged  with  assumption  for  considering  this  an  axiom;  then- why  is  it  that 
a  sect  which  disregards  all  traditions  of  medicine,  and  found  their  system  upon 
a  dogma  which  contradicts  all  that  we  have  held  as  truth,  why  is  it  that  they 
are  flourishing  and  we  are  going  to  the  wall  ? 

The  answer  to  this  question  presents  itself  to  my  mind  under  two  heads, 
which  may  be  formularized  as  follows :  Homoeopathy  lives  upon  the  disgrace 
brought  ujion  the  profession  of  medicine  by  the  low  standard  of  medical 
educalion,,  and  flounshes  upon  the  iatolgrant  opposition  it  has  received  at  the 
hands^frcgular  physicians. 

It  is  with  the  secondjJ;he  lesser  of  the  two  evils  I  propose  to  deal  at  this  tune. 

The  treatment  of  homoeopathy  by  the  regular  profession  in  past  years  is  so 
well  known  as  to  require  no  mention,  therefore  let  us  turn  our  attention  to  the 
present,  and  by  reading  its  signs  in  the  light  of  the  past,  endeavor  to  do  some- 
thing for  our  future. 

The  position  of  the  regular  profession  in  regard  to  homoeopathy  may  be  ex- 
pressed in  a  few  words.  We  are  not  aware  of  tlaeir  existence.  [£liey_have  no 
profe^ional  riij'hts  which  we  are  bound  to  respect,  and  when  forced  by  some 
laymen  to  speak  vipon  J;he^ubject,,pr  give  an  opinion  upon  homoeopathy,  the 
opinion  is  thatjt^  is  a  ;itiumjbug."     This  line  oT  trea'tinent  was  bad  enougE' 


f 


32 


wli^n^hpmaopiatli^w  young,  butjiQw^ when  we  stand  on  equalfooting before 
the  law,  and  nearly_eciual  beTore  the  public,  it  is  suicidal.  "" 

It  may  be  well  to  explain  what  I  mean  by  equal  rights  before  the  law.  All 
the  rights  which  members  of  the  regular  profession  of  this  State  enjoy  are 
granted  them  by  Acts  of  Legislature,  the  first  of  which  was  passed  April  10th, 
1813,  this  and  the  Act  of  1827,  contain  the  •'E-egulations  concerning  the  Practice 
of  Physic  and  Surgery  in  this  State."  They  provide  for  the  establishment  of 
County  Medical  Societies,  <'the  only  organization  existing  under  law  for  the 
purpose  of  diffusing  true  science  and  knowledge  of  the  healing  art,"  and 
otherwise  point  out  and  fix  the  duties,  responsibilities  and  immunities  of  phy- 
sicians and  surgeons. 

Onjl^ilJ[^h3LjJ.51^1ie_Legisla^^^  of.  this  State  admitted  the  homoeopathic 
profession  to  all  the  rights  and  privileges  enjoyed  by  members  of  the"regular 
profession  under  the  above  mentioned  Acts.  This  provided  for  the  present,  and 
in  the  Acts  incorporating  their  colleges,  exactly  the  same  power  is  granted  to 
them  as  had  been  granted  to  our  medical  schools,  which  provides  for  the  fut- 
ure. I  doubt  not  there  are  members  of  our  profession  who  have  hitherto  failed 
to  realize  the  change  wrought  in  the  homoeopathic  profession  by  the  Acts  of 
1857.  As  before  stated,  the  Act  admitted  the  homoeopathic  profession  to  all 
the  rights  and  privileges  as  physicians  and  surgeons  under  the  Acts  of  1813 
and  1827,  and  all_ Acts,  amendatory  thereof,  thus  they  became  "legally  author- 
ized practicing  physicians  and  surgeons,"  and  as  such,  are  entitled  to  member- 
ship of  our  County  Medical  Societies.  This  right  is  positive,  and  no  County 
Society  has  the  power  to  adopt  a  by-law  which  will  keep  them  out  if  they 
should^  make  application  for  admission.  The  right  of  JLegally.  authQrizing  phy- 
sicians to  membership...  of  County  Medical  Societies  has  been  most  definitely 
settled  by  our  courts,  and  the  proceedings  to  obtain  such  rights  are  well  under- 
stood by  many  of  our  members. 

In  view  of  these  facts  what  should  the  regular  profession  do  in  the  matter  ? 
Shall  we  continue  to  call  ourselvess  "the  profession,"  and  neither  by  public  act 
or  private  word  allow  that  there  is  any  other  ?  Shall  we  continue  a  line  of 
treatment  condemned  by  law  and  by  experience,  treatment  which  only  makes 
homoeopathy  notorious  and  ourselves  disgraceful ;  or  shall  we  submit  grace-' 
fully  to  the  laws  of  the  State,  and  public  opinion,  and  proifer  to  the  homoeo- 
pathic profession  those  amenities  which  should  exist  between  professional 
equals?  Invite  them  to  the  rights  in  our  County  Medical  Societies,  when 
called  by  their  patrons,  attend  with  them  in  consultation ;  when  wished  by  our 
patients  ask  them  to  attend  in  consultation  with  us  ?  If  they  have  any  superior 
knowledge  in  the  management  of  the  disease  or  the  protection  of  health,  our 
duty  to  our  patrons  requires  us  to  avail  ourselves  of  that  knowledge.  If  we 
possess  the  greater  professional  ability,  they  and  their  patrons  will  find  it  out. 
If  we  hold  back  from  this,  we  may  reasonably  be  charged  with  having  little 
confidence  in  our  doctrines.  K  we  go  into  it,  Ixest my.faith,.iipi«i.'.*.the  sur- 
viyjaLelJilifi-fiitieat/'  •  '~       ~^ 

Buffalo,  August,  1871.  H.  R.  Hopkins,  M.  D. 


14  DAY  USE 

RETURN  TO  DESK  FROM  WHICH  BORROWED 

LOAN  DEPT. 

This  book  is  due  on  the  last  date  stamped  below,  or 

on  the  date  to  which  renewed. 

Renewed  books  are  subject  to  immediate  recall. 


lOE 


RS:bJVtD  BY 


JUN  1 9 1986 


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